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Rick Smith
BiographyRick is a retired National Park Service employee. He served in 6 national parks, 2 regional offices, and in the Service's headquarters office in DC. Prior to his NPS career, he was a Peace Corps Volunteer, serving as a professor in the philosophy department in Paraguay's National University. He has worked extensively in Latin American as a protected area specialist.
Rick's Most Recent Comments (view all)
- 11/04/2009 7:58 am - Reader Participation Survey: What Was Your Most Fascinating National Park Interpretive Program? : Two summers ago when I was volunteering at the Ranger Museum in Yellowstone, I attended an evening program at the small camground at Norris Junction. The topic for the evening had to do with the history of Yellowstone NP. The seasoal interpretive ranger giving the talk was also a concert ...
- 10/21/2009 7:49 am - Investigation Of Gettysburg National Military Park Superintendent Finds Cybertracks to Pornographic Images : D-2 is correct in regard to the case at Cuyahoga. I wonder if one of the differences in the YOSE case is that the headquarters of the Foundation is in San Francisco. Tollefson would not be in the same close proximity to his successor as Latschar would have been. After ...
- 10/15/2009 2:24 pm - Reader Participation Day: What Epic Treks in the National Parks Are on Your To-Do List? : We flew through Gates of the Arctic NP and landed at Summit Lake, above the Arctic Circle. We then hiked for 5 days along the N. Fork of the Koyakuk River on a trailess route. At the Gates of the Arctic itself, we picked up two small rafts and floated ...
- 10/07/2009 4:18 pm - Lodging in the Parks: Tioga Pass Resort : When I worked in Tuolumne in the 70's, the resort was famous for its pies. I am glad that Kurt says that they are still good. Rick Smith
- 10/02/2009 9:41 am - U.S. House National Parks Subcommittee To Consider Red Rock Wilderness Act Legislation : Wow, Anon, that's pretty harsh. All those of us who support designated wilderness are saying is that there ought to be a small portion of the American landscape that is free of mechanized recreation. In my own state of NM, the BLM manages 13.4 million acres, the USFS, 10.2 million ...
- 9/26/2009 4:52 pm - Another Cellphone Tower OKed for Kings Canyon National Park : Kurt-- Maybe we have lost the following: 1.) A bit of self-reliance. If we know that a trained SAR team is just a cell phone call or a SPOT message away, it changes the character of a wilderness trip. We no longer have to rely on our own knowledge, skills, ...
- 9/26/2009 9:04 am - Reader Participation Day: What Aspect(s) of the National Park System Do You Want to Read More About? : Some of you may have read [i]Off the Wall,[/i] which is a summary of all the deaths in Yosemite since its creation. There is even a chapter on the deaths involved in building the dam at Hetch Hetchy. In the foreward to the book, Mike Finley, former superintendent of Everglades, ...
- 9/26/2009 8:53 am - It's Official – Senate Confirms Jonathan Jarvis as Director of the National Park Service : Good for you, Anon. His appointment has thrilled many of us retirees, also. We wish him the very best in his run at the NPS's new director. Rick Smith
- 9/25/2009 9:11 am - The National Parks: America's Best Idea : I love this piece. It makes one think about some very important things. Los Angeles Times Big Picture blog Thursday, September 24, 2009 10:18 AM PDT Is Ken Burns a secret propagandist for socialism? Patrick Goldstein on the collision of entertainment, media and pop culture I wasn't planning on DVR-ing ...
- 9/23/2009 7:55 pm - Traveler's Gear Box: When You Need To Stop Bleeding Fast.... : Asoul-- If your patient is conscious, it is always good to ask him/her to what he/she might be allergic. Most people have a fairly good idea about this. I never even give anyone an aspirin or a excedrin without asking. Most of the products that Kurt mentions are safe for ...
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